vintage may guest post

Hello friends! Today I am excited to be a part of Vintage May, a series co-hosted by Kristin from Skirtastop and Jess at Craftiness is Not Optional celebrating vintage style! I am over at Kristin's lovely blog sharing a tutorial on how to alter a dress pattern to add a sweet vintage-inspired scalloped yoke (and make sure to check out the bonus section at the bottom - here is a hint!).

Head on over to check it out, and make sure to follow along for the rest of the series - Kristin and Jess have rounded up some lovely ladies to participate and I can't wait to see all of the vintage-inspired loveliness to come!

 

pattern remix: shorts

The other day I got the itch to make LM a pair of shorts for the summer. I had an idea of what I wanted them to look like but I needed a base pattern to work from, so I searched through my stash of vintage patterns until I found one in her size that I could remix.  

After a little chopping and tweaking, as well as the addition of some ties in front and a pocket in back, this is what I ended up with:

Overall I am really happy with the result! I am loving the extra details and the contrasting fabric. I know these shorts will get a lot of use this summer and I just may end up making another pair. Have you ever remixed a pattern? I thought it was fun to add a little personal touch.

I'm linking up with KCWC!

xo,

S

made: 1950's jagged yoke dress

If you can stretch your memories back to October and November then you will remember when I started making the little red dress on the pattern below... I am happy to say I did finish it! Quite some time ago actually, but I am just now getting around to sharing it after the busy holidays.

 As you can see, it's a little big for LM across the shoulders which I thought it would be. I have found that vintage sewing patterns tend to be pretty true to size or even a little bigger, whereas actual vintage clothing tends to be on the small side - anyone else experience this? Of course, it's fine since that just means she won't grow out of it as fast!


The hemlines in vintage patterns, however, are always short - which is good if you want some cute ruffled bloomers to peek out, not so good if there's a princess pantie peep-show going on... I lowered the hemline on this dress, first, because LM is tall for her age, and second, to save me the work of lowering it later if/when she has a growth spurt.

I really love the jagged yoke with the buttons. The method was so simple, I think I'll post a tutorial on how to do it soon. It's these little unique details in vintage clothing that really get me - the yokes, the collars, the pockets!

Have you been sewing lately?

work in progress

 I started making progress on this little dress again after all the costume sewing craziness literally buried it in sequins. So far, the instructions have been clear and easy to execute. I even got the zipper sewn in right on my first try which I think may be a record for me - usually zippers and I don't get along well. Probably because I never learned how to sew them properly, which I tell myself I need to do every time and save myself the frustration of ripping them out. It's silly, really.

I got as far as the front yoke and then my progress was halted once more, this time by fabric choice. I had wondered if I should make the yoke out of a solid color in the beginning, and after seeing it all in the diamond print I don't have to wonder anymore. The best part of this dress, in my opinion, is the unique pointed yoke and it just doesn't stand out enough as it is... so, off to the fabric store to decide - blue or cream?

Are you sewing up a pattern? If so, leave me a link in the comments, I would love to see!

all cut out

This morning I found some time to cut out the dress pattern pieces. You can see the fabric I chose above, it has little arrows (or at least they look sort of like arrows) between the diamonds, all pointing in the same direction. I decided I wanted the arrows to point up, simply because it seemed more positive, so that meant I had to lay out the pattern pieces according to the layout for 'with nap' since the fabric has a one way design.

A lot of very old vintage patterns like this one will have layouts for fabric in widths that aren't generally sold anymore, and this was the case here: 

The only layout 'with nap' was for a 35" width fabric and I had a 45" fabric. This also was the only width on the back of the pattern 'with nap' to tell me how much yardage to buy in the first place. It told me to get 2 yards of 35" fabric, so I got 1 3/4 yards of 45" fabric (it was all that was left on the bolt, so that helped me decide), and after it was all laid out I ended up with just a little left over. I also didn't lay the pieces out exactly like the pattern showed because I could fit them better in a different way on my wider fabric.   

All of this would have been much easier if my fabric wasn't one directional (since it did have yardage and layouts for 44" fabric without the nap), but it didn't take too long to think it all out. I checked all the pieces twice to make sure they were right before I cut, since I have made mistakes with one way prints before, and this is where I am at now...

When sewing with vintage patterns, just remember that the fabric widths available today are different from what they were then, so what makes the best sense isn't necessarily what the pattern tells you... but don't let this intimidate you, you are smart and can figure it out!

Now time to get sewing...

felt cloche

I am guest posting today over at Sparkle Power while Candace is enjoying some time off with her new sweet baby boy. Remember this hat? Well, head on over to find out more about it!

Want to make your own? You can find the pattern here.

road trip

I started sorting through my vintage patterns today. There were so many I didn't even remember I had, it was crazy! Don't you love the cover art? It always makes me want to sew the dress to look just like the picture. It's going to take me awhile to go through and check if all the pieces are in each one, but I am feeling motivated! 

Except... now I am going out of town so it will have to be put on hold. The girls and I are off to hit the open road for our annual Girl's Night Out with my mom, sisters, SIL, and nieces - actually, this year it is an all out Girl's Weekend! On the agenda is a play, swimming, shopping, eating, and of course a lot of girl talk. It's going to be a nice getaway! 

So, I am wishing you a lovely weekend a little early :)

i'm a sucker for vintage fashion

But I probably don't have to tell you that. I bought three adorable vintage toddler girl patterns over the weekend that I just couldn't resist and am so excited to sew up! These didn't make it into my shopping cart but they are definitely in my favorites...along with many others. Love them.

Sweetheart Sunsuit

Shortie Dress

Blouses

kitty romper

I decided to start another project yesterday during nap time. If I'm lucky I still get three hours to myself in the afternoon and I try to take full advantage of it. I know one day soon I won't have any time to myself! This is another vintage pattern and fabric I already had in my stash. I added the bow pocket because I thought since the kittens had bows on so should the Little Miss!

We are off for the weekend so see you next week!

pocket smock

Over the weekend I got the sewing itch so I cleared out the seedlings and unearthed my machine. The Little Miss is obsessed with pockets right now so I decided to make her a pocket smock so she can store all of the little 'treasures' she finds around the house. It's funny what she ends up with sometimes. About five minutes after I put this on her she had a wooden block and four little plastic speckled eggs weighing her down.

I used a vintage pattern and scrounged through fabric and notions I already had on hand. The flower print is from an old pillowcase and the gingham I thrifted a while back. The button on the front is leftover from this romper refashion. I love how it turned out and it was worth it to hear her excitedly yell, "Pockets!"

By the way, she is modeling it on the ledge of a freshly painted wall in our living room. It was a darker bright blue but now it is a light silvery blue (hard to tell in the picture). We still have to touch up the edges but I love the new color - its much more peaceful. Until I decide how I want to hang all of my pictures up they are leaning against the wall on the ledge.

I'm adding this to the elsie marley flickr group for the Kids Clothes Week Challenge.

vintage embroidery: mr. + mrs.

(image flipped here)

I was thinking about embroidery patterns and remembered that I had thrifted some vintage iron-on transfers a few months back. I don't think I am going to use these at the moment, but I thought you might like too! This is just one part so I will probably have some more for you in the future. Please use this for personal use only and enjoy!

vintage coat pattern

I've been asked if I used a vintage pattern to make the Little Miss' church coat and the answer is yes! I made view 1 (the yellow one) but opted not to add the fake pocket flaps on the front or use lace on the collar. I am still tempted to make the large detachable collar shown in view 2, but we'll see if I ever get around to it. And how cute is that petal hat! Funny how the hat is what made me buy this pattern in the first place, but I have yet to make it!

This particular pattern I bought off Etsy (so many cute options), but I have found a lot of vintage patterns that cost next to nothing at thrift stores, garage sales, and my mother's sewing room closet!

yellow apple coat

I love this yellow apple fabric! It makes me happy. I ordered it online and when it got here it was a little heavier than I thought, so I decided to make a light-weight coat. This vintage pattern is from 1972. I shortened the sleeves to 3/4 length and love the way it turned out!

snowflower dress

I love this dress pattern from 1974. It's simple, yet the flutter sleeves and bodice line make it so sweet and girlie.

Pair this dress with leggings and some pigtails and you'll have one adorable little girl!

wonderland dress

My mom used this dress pattern for my oldest sister, Jayne, back in 1974. She made the version with the applique duck and Jayne would wear it to go to the park to feed the ducks.



I used fabric from Moda's Wonderland line for mine. It reminds me of a drawing from my childhood of people walking through a magical land of giant flowers.